16-year-old girl kidnapped and killed by stepfather – apparently murder and suicide: police

A Massachusetts teenager was allegedly killed by her stepfather in an apparent murder-suicide, authorities said.

An unnamed 16-year-old girl and her stepfather, Juliano Santana, were found dead in Santana’s vehicle this week from apparent gunshot wounds, according to a joint statement issued Thursday, May 30, by Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan and Acton Police Chief James Cogan.

Authorities said the suspect was on her way home from school when she was abducted by her stepfather and killed in a nearby parking lot. Police said Santana then killed herself.

Authorities were able to locate Santana by contacting his probation officer, who was able to determine his location using a GPS tracking device that had been fitted to him as part of a pending case.

Also involved in this case was Santana’s stepdaughter, who claimed in 2021 that he had sexually abused her on several occasions.

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At that time, Santana was arrested and charged with six counts of aggravated rape of a child; his bail was set at $30,000.

He was ordered to “be connected to a GPS monitoring device, to stay away from the victim and have no contact with him, and to have no unsupervised contact with anyone under the age of 18,” police said.

According to authorities, a restraining order was also in place against Santana’s stepdaughter.

The investigation into the deaths of Santana and his stepdaughter is ongoing.

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or visit www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, in more than 170 languages.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or go to Rainn.org.

If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, texting “STRENGTH” to the Crisis Text Line at 741741, or going to 988lifeline.org.